Garden City, Grady scoff at idea of rebuilding

Jordan Mason

Published 6:30 pm, Monday, February 27, 2012

This season was supposed to be a rebuilding year for Grady and Garden City.

The Wildcats and the Bearkats must have missed the memo.

As both teams enter tonight's area round of playoff games, both have already trumped the notion that this was a rebuilding year -- either that or they've been a part of two of the better rebuilding seasons people will ever see.

Garden City lost five seniors, all of whom had been varsity staples since their sophomore year, and all the Bearkats did was win runner-up in District 12-A, winning 12 of their last 14 games, with both losses coming to Water Valley.

But the ride hasn't always been smooth for Garden City (22-11), who takes on 11-A champ Ira (22-5) at 7 p.m. today at Big Spring High School.

"We were ridiculously young," Bearkat coach Koby Abney said, "and early in the season we looked like we were young."

Yet since a district-opening loss to Bronte, Abney said his team seems to have turned a corner thanks to its slew of underclassmen, like leading scorers Sam Miller and Corbin Davis, both sophomores, understanding their roles and where they fit in on the team.

And the Bearkats have gotten senior leadership from players like point guard Michael Lopez and forward Reggie Halfmann, who's "really been the glue that's kind of held us together," Abney said.

Grady (25-3), who takes on District 6-A champ Turkey Valley (18-7) at 6 p.m. today at Wolfforth Frenship, has also gotten a lift from a pair of seniors, the only two players returning from last year's team.

"But we returned two really good players," Grady coach Thomas Clay said.

One was Zeke Clay, Thomas' son, who's played varsity every year of his high school career, earning All-State honors twice, and one was Bransen Richards, who earned District 8-A Newcomer of the Year honors last year after transferring from Greenwood. Their presence has helped ease the loss of eight seniors from last year's team.

"I think people believed we were going to rebuild," Thomas Clay said. "I don't think Zeke and Branson thought we were going to rebuild."

Like Garden City, Grady wouldn't be where it is today without the contributions of a number of underclassmen, who Clay said have been so great collectively that he didn't feel it was fair to single just one out for his contributions.

That said, the Wildcats have been helped by the lock-down defense of junior forward Michael Jimenez -- "Whenever the other team has a stud we put Mike on him," Clay said -- and twins Uziel and Ivan San Juan. And freshman E.J. Rodriguez has provided a nice scoring option behind Zeke Clay and Richards.

Garden City, meanwhile, has thrived on its offense after traditionally thriving on defense under Abney.

"This is definitely one of the most offensively gifted teams I've ever coached," Abney said.

But perhaps what has helped both teams the most is the drive to continue the recent run of success that both programs have enjoyed.

Garden City has reached at least the area round of the playoffs in each season under Abney, and Grady is just two years removed from a state title game appearance. And with that resume, there simply may be no time for rebuilding seasons at Garden City and Grady.

"They want to prove that they belong in the great teams at Grady, and they don't want to let them down," Clay said of this year's team. "They don't want to be the team that brought Grady back down to earth -- they want to continue the tradition."

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Jordan Mason can be reached at jmason@mrt.com.

GRADY VS.

TURKEY VALLEY

When/where: 6 p.m. today, Frenship HS

Records: Grady 25-3; Turkey Valley 18-7

Last game: Grady 70, Petersburg 51; Turkey Valley 60, New Home 46

Notes/Quotes: This is a matchup of district champions coming off of double-digit victories in their last games, which were their first in the postseason after first-round byes. Grady coach Thomas Clay said Turkey Valley is similar to the Wildcats in that they rely on team speed and solid defense to defeat opponents. But what this matchup does offer Grady is the rare size advantage over the smaller Trojans. "For the first time this year we feel like we have a size advantage," Clay said, "and we'd like to use that." ... Clay said the Trojans are very balanced scoring-wise and don't need one player to produce for them to score points. That may make it difficult for the Grady defense. "We're not sure about them because they have a collection of guys that score their points," Clay said. Clay said he believes his frequent substitutions will allow his team to keep up with Turkey Valley's collection of scorers. ... This game pits Clay, a former Turkey Valley coach, against Shawn Harrison, who Clay succeeded at Grady. Clay said he coached many of Turkey Valley's players in elementary P.E. and still remembers them, as does his son Zeke Clay. ... Grady is looking to advance past the area round after being tripped up in this round last season, falling to Anton, 56-52.

Next: Winner will play Hartley or Nazareth at 1 p.m. Friday at the Texan Dome at South Plains College

GARDEN CITY VS. IRA

When/where: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Big Spring HS

Records: Garden City 22-11; Ira 22-5

Last game: Garden City 66, Fort Davis 41; Ira 63, Wink 45

Last meeting: Ira 52, Garden City 47, OT on Dec. 29

Notes/Quotes: This game is a rematch of a meeting in Grady's Black and Gold Classic in December, a game Ira took in overtime. The Bulldogs remained hot, winning District 11-A, but will meet a different Bearkat team than the one they faced in Grady. "We're light years better than we were," Bearkat coach Koby Abney said. ... What else will help Garden City in the rematch is having starting point guard Michael Lopez for a full game, after the senior rolled his ankle in the first meeting, causing him to miss all but one quarter of play. "Him being full strength and playing the way he's been playing will definitely make a difference," Abney said. ... Abney said the priority for his team will be protecting the ball and valuing possessions, which he didn't feel like it did in the December game. "They're going to score," Abney said, "but it's really easy to score when you hand them the ball, and they can just lay it in." ... Garden City has won its two playoff games by an average of 24.5 points and is looking to advance past the area round for the second consecutive season and the third time in Abney's tenure at the school.

Next: winner will play Aspermont or Graford at 7 p.m. Friday at Moody Coliseum at Abilene Christian University